Hello Houseboats! Life On Seattle's Shores

Seattle has a thriving houseboat culture with over 500 floating homes that dock upon its lakes with unobstructed views of the skyline, mountains and on a clear day an enormous volcano. Now I'm not talking about creepy, decrepit, "who would live there?" kind of homes. The houseboats of the day are not what they used to be; there is a new generation of modern and chic floating homes that just might make you consider leaving your land based dwelling behind.

Houseboats give off that carefree, romantic, in tune with nature kind of vibe that can be quite alluring to the passerby. When I read about house boaters describing their way of life it just seems like I'm missing out on something special and unique. For them there is no going back.

Most houseboats are small; there is no getting around that. They are typically between 500-1200 square feet, but don't let that deter you. We have all seen what amazing and inspirational decorating can be accomplished with space challenged homes on our Small/Cool contest throughout the years. Now don't get me wrong, they aren't all small. If you have the means there are plenty of incredibly luxurious houseboats as well: the stuff dreams are made of.

Can we land dwellers just simplify our belongings and live in a small, modern, clean space that has been dropped on the water? I'm not sure if it floats my boat just yet, but I'd like to still daydream about it. You know what they say, "the water is always bluer ...".

For those of you who have a strong affinity to be on the water and can manage in a small space, then you may have a match made in heaven. Here are some examples of the modern day floating dwellings that are docked around town these days.